ICS inaugurated its Centre for Philosophy, Religion and Social Ethics on the evening of October 24. It was a gala event. Representatives of the communities of scholarship that ICS participates in were present and offered fitting words of congratulations and encouragement. I have said it before: ICS has been given the enormous grace to participate in the three communities presently extant within the North American academy today—the loose confederation of conservative Protestant and Catholic scholars and institutions including those of the Reformed world, the equally loose confederation of progressive Catholic and mainline Protestant scholars and institutions, and the still generally but no longer wholly secularizing world of our pluralist universities, both public and private. We belong to each of these three worlds but on the fringes, for there is only a narrow place in which they all come together and overlap.
In an age of retrenchment such as we are facing, when society is looking again at its investment in higher education and wondering whether it can afford the investment it has made or whether the investment is directed at the right things, the communities that make up that academy can easily feel defensive and look to their separate centres to shore them up if the worst comes to pass and they are forced to shrink or transform in very significant ways. This is bad news for an institution like ICS that inhabits the margins of each of the academy's three communities, for when they are looking away from their fringes, it is easy for ICS to seem like it does not belong, that it falls through the cracks or perches precariously "on the slash" as Jim Olthuis loved to say to the horror of any Junior Members from the U.K, that it perches suspicious to all and embraced by none. In short, in the present environment we are balanced on the knife-edge of opportunity and disaster. The opportunity on the edge of disaster is that ICS can speak in and to scholars and institutions of the academy's three communities as a participant voice in each of the communities and so offer a voice that encourages all to acknowledge their overlap and to see it as a place in which they can profit from each other in their common struggle to understand a shared world. The danger is that ICS's marginal position within each of the communities means its participation within them is easy to overlook; that it falls off the communal "mattering map" and comes to be heard as an outsider's voice rather than as the voice of a member in good standing.
If the representatives of ICS's three communities at ICS's gala event were to be believed, they give ICS and its new Centre a fighting chance of providing the sort of complex and bridge-building context in which scholars of different types can join to seek together our common good. What difficulties they see looming in the future of the project was not on the agenda on such an occasion. But nobody at ICS thinks the task it has taken up, that it has discerned it is called to, is easy. How could it be? There is little in the countless stories of God's dealings with his people from which to conclude that he covenants with them in order to make their existence an easy one. As Tevyev says in "Fiddler on the Roof" during one of his so very Old Testament-like talks with God: "I know we are the chosen people, but would it hurt you to choose someone else for a while?" Nothing ICS has ever taken on in its history could be called "low stress"; no, it is a high stress employer. But along with the stress and the risk, what an opportunity! May we be worthy of the grace we've been given. Now there is a prayer for this month. I would ask you to join us in that prayer. Who knows what it all might lead to?
For the President,
Bob Sweetman
Tuesday, November 1: We offer prayers of gratitude for the wonderful success of the gala held last month to celebrate the launch of our new Research Centre. It was a wonderful evening!
Wednesday, November 2: The Leadership Team meets today. We pray for God's blessing and guidance to lead their discussions and decisions.
Thursday, November 3: Today Junior Member Jeffrey Morrisey will defend his MA thesis, titled "The Odyssey (/Theodicy) of the Body: Communication and Freedom in Merleau-Ponty, through a Fichtean Framework". Senior Member Shannon Hoff is Jeff's mentor. We pray for energy and insight as he prepares for his defense.
This evening ICS is presenting a presentation in Waterloo featuring Senior Member Ron Kuipers and Junior Member Jon Stanley. We ask God's blessing on Ron, Jon and everyone who attends this event.
Friday, November 4: Senior Member Doug Blomberg will be travelling all the way to the Toronto Airport Hilton on November 4 and 5 for the Religious Education Association conference on the theme of "Neuroscience, Creativity, and Diversity". He will present a paper that locates neuroscientific research findings within a reformational understanding of humanness. Please pray for fruitful interaction with educators from diverse denominational backgrounds.
Monday, November 7: We ask God to bless Kevin Huinink as he is scheduled to defend his MA thesis at ICS. Senior Member Doug Blomberg is Kevin's mentor. We pray for energy and insight for Kevin as he prepares for this defense.
Tuesday, November 8: ICS is seeking a Senior Development Officer and a Director of Finance and Administration. We ask God's blessing on these searches and we pray that we will find the right people for the job.
Wednesday, November 9: The Faculty meets today. We pray for God's wisdom to guide this meeting.
Thursday, November 10: We ask for God's blessing on those who are planning the Annual General Meeting to be held on Wednesday, November 16. We pray for energy and enthusiasm for all who are involved.
Friday, November 11: Today we observe Remembrance Day in Canada. We are reminded of the wars that continue to rage and the soldiers and civilians who continue to suffer around the world. We pray for peace.
Monday, November 14: We offer prayers of gratitude and give thanks to you, our many supporters who have presented ICS with gifts of prayer, money, and expressions of appreciation. We are constantly blessed with your interest and support.
Tuesday, November 15: The Leadership Team meets today. We pray that God's wisdom will guide this meeting.
Wednesday, November 16: This evening ICS will hold its Annual General Meeting, where members will elect new Board members and conduct the annual required business for ICS. We are extremely grateful for our committed and hard working Board members. Please pray for wisdom and guidance at this meeting.
Thursday, November 17: We offer prayers of thanks for all the hard work done by the outgoing Board members. We ask God for wisdom and energy for the incoming Board members.
Friday, November 18: Senior Member Shannon Hoff's father, Bram is slowly improving after his moped accident. While he is still in the hospital, he is in good spirits and almost ready to embark on the project of intensive physiotherapy.
Monday, November 21: Today we ask for God's help for those who are struggling with cancer and other illnesses. We pray for strength, patience and for good results from treatment.
Tuesday, November 22: We ask God's help and guidance for all those who are doing advancement work for ICS. Please pray that support for the vision and mission of ICS continues to grow.
Wednesday, November 23: The Interfaculty Colloquium will be held this afternoon. We pray for God's blessing on all participants, and for good and positive insights that will further important academic work.
Thursday, November 24: Today is Thanksgiving Day in the United States. Pray for safe travel for those who are going to join their families and friends for this holiday. On this day, let us reflect on God's grace and give thanks for family and friends.
Dr. Don Sinnema, Professor of Theology at Trinity Christian College and an ICS MPhil, will present the ARIHE Lecture at ICS this afternoon. The lecture is entitled, "Heaven: Is it part of Creation?"
Friday, November 25: The season of Advent begins this weekend. We pray for God's blessings as we prepare to celebrate Christ's birth.
Monday, November 28: We continue to ask for God's blessing and guidance for those who are involved in the planning for the Social Justice and Human Rights Conference to be held next April.
Tuesday, November 29: As the fall semester draws to a close, we ask God for energy and wisdom for all our Junior Members who are working hard in their courses and for a sense of balance as they deal with families and jobs as well. We pray too that student jobs will be found where they are needed.
Wednesday, November 30: The Leadership Team meets today. We pray for God's blessing and guidance for this meeting.
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